Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Happy Hump Day, everyone! I hope you are having a good week. I just thought I would pop in and tell you I'll be taking another short break from posting while I work on some changes to our blog.When we made the big move to Montana, I made plans to do a lot more posting. I also decided then that it was time for our blog design to grow up a little, and I am finally getting around to making those changes. I will be back on Monday with the new scenery!

Tom and I are heading out for the weekend to a Young Farmers conference. We are hoping to make some new farmer friends and network a little. Today, my first issue of Atomic Ranch arrived in the mail, and I am so excited to bring it along on the trip for something to read! I'll let you know if I find some good inspiration.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

I'm digging their retro, mid-century vibe, though I have no idea when they were actually made.What do you think? I'm planning this for a sitting area in my basement. What else does it need? A little color?

Monday, September 27, 2010

When you've been in a daily posting habit, someone is bound to notice when you go missing for over a week. Sorry. You see, I had to take a blogging break to work on organizing my house. We are still living in chaos after moving 3 months ago. Lately, when I start to feel overwhelmed, Tom has taken to reciting this little poem:

Have you heard of tiny Melinda Mae,Who ate a monstrous whale?She thought she could,She said she would,So she started in right at the tail.

And everyone said,"You're much too small,"But that didn't bother Melinda at all,She took little bites and she shewed very slow,Just like a little girl should...

...and in eighty-nine years she ate that whaleBecause she said she would!!!

Saturday, September 18, 2010

I've had a few questions about my cloth diapering adventures, so please bare (ha!) with me through one last diaper post.

So, the verdict? After a few weeks of trying them, I've decided to keep going. I maybe would feel differently if I weren't home as much, but for us right now, it works. I love not having as much diaper garbage.

Doing laundry every day hasn't been much of a problem. I try to line dry them as much as possible to maximize the savings (they can take awhile to dry in the dryer), but then I usually finish them off with a quick dryer cycle to soften them up and make sure they are really dry.

She seems to be getting used to the feel of them because she had a few good sleeping nights (before the ear infection came along and threw that for a loop). I was afraid I might have to use disposables at night, but now I am only using them if I'm away from the house for more than a few hours.

Oh, and if you do this, I highly recommend getting cloth wipes too. I just wet about 6 at a time with hot water and put them in the wipe warmer. (If you let any more than that sit wet for too long they can start to smell since they don't have preservatives like disposable wipes do). But it is the lack of preservatives that make them so gentle. And you don't have to worry about separating your dirty wipes (garbage) from your dirty diapers (laundry).

So, newbie mothers, if you are thinking about cloth diapering, go for it! Its worth a try! (And I was a skeptic).

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Eva has passed the 3 month milestone already. Time flies when you're having fun.

Well, mostly fun. Eva is such a joy, but she hasn't been sleeping very well. She came down with a stuffy nose and cold early last week, and true to form (for my girls), she got her first ear infection. She is starting to feel better, I think, so I'm hoping the sleeping improves soon. This momma can't get by very well on this little sleep.

Nevertheless, we moved her into her own room this weekend. She is a light sleeper so I'm hoping she won't be disturbed as much in her own room—even if it means I have to trek to her room to feed her 3 times a night. And it means we have our freedom back. We can to go to bed when we want to, stay up and read, and get ready for bed without tiptoeing and keeping the lights off.

Oh, and she weighed in at a hefty 15.5 lbs last week! This girl can eat. But we are so glad she is healthy and strong.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

I can't believe Sarah isn't my little baby anymore. She went off to her first day of preschool last week and I've been having so much fun watching her enthusiasm as she gets up and gets ready. Her first morning when we woke her up she was sure it was much to dark to get up (6:30 AM). But when we explained that it was time to get ready, she immediately reverted to worrying that she was going to be late. My mom works in town on Tuesdays and Thursdays and will be dropping her off, so we brought Sarah down to go with her. While she waited for her Grandma she got more and more worried until my mom just decided to leave a little early and drive slowly into town. I hope her excitement doesn't wear off too soon!

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

It's often hard for a farmer to get away and enjoy recreating in the summer, so you take advantage of it while you can, usually after a day of rain when the fields are too wet. But now that harvest is over for the year and the grain is in the bins, we were able to have a short break before seeding started. For my family, that meant going to the lake. It's a little late to be reporting on what we did over Labor Day weekend, but hey, we wouldn't want want to miss an opportunity to show you how much fun we had at Holter Lake.

^ See this? That's a happy face.

^ This is a happy face too. I think getting on a boat pretty much takes the cake for my dad. The photo looks a little dark because we were going through the Gates of the Mountains on the Missouri in the shady evening. There is a little hamburger joint along the route (boat access only) so we stopped to enjoy a relaxing dinner by the lake.And the next day we stayed on for a bit more boating and playing by the shore.

Fall is knocking on our door so we have to take advantage of every bit of good weather we have left! Hope you enjoyed a great holiday weekend also.

Monday, September 13, 2010

She is a beautiful 4-year-old yellow lab and she came free from Craig's list. What's the catch? No catch, really. Her previous owners are a big hunting family and she is a bit gun shy. Also, after she had one litter of puppies they discovered she was a carrier for a common gene in labs that causes heat stroke. They don't want to breed that gene, so their only condition is that we have her spayed. She is a little skittish as she gets used to her new digs and family, but she is really sweet with the kids and sleeps in Abby's room.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

To be a stylist for Anthropologie seems like a dream job. I've long been among the ranks that love their amazing window displays and store installations (and clothes, duh...), but since I can't browse the store as frequently now, this time it was their website that blew me away. Loving these stitched re-creations of their clothes:

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Check out this kitchen remodeled on the cheap. I would prefer to use higher quality materials, but I'm totally impressed with the look she got with very little money. I love the black and white and the antique touches. From here.